Learning To Ride On Back of Bike - My First Time Riding On A Motorcycle - Oooops

by Wynter NashAugust 11, 2012

Do you remember your first time riding with someone on a motorcycle? Whew, I sure do!

In fact I nearly caused us to wreck our beautiful new bike, so I'm happy to say that I later became an expert pillion.

So, here's my story and I'm sticking to it!

When you first become a passenger on a motorcycle, you don't just simply jump on and ride, there are a few things you need to learn and understand.

For me, the hardest thing and the thing that nearly caused us to wreck was I did not understand "leaning for corners". For example, when the motorcycle is turning left or is on a curve to the left, you need to lean INTO the curve, so you lean in left. For me, this was completely unnatural, I felt that I would fall or cause the bike to fall if I leaned into the turn. I thought I should try to sit up straight for fear of falling over. WRONG! Doing that I nearly caused my husband to lose control of our bike, but thankfully he did a fantastic job and we did not crash. I am also thankful that I was wearing my pretty pink DOT motorcycle helmet, lol.

So, to the newbie passenger rider, that is a very important thing to learn, lean into the curve or turn, turning right, you lean right, or turning left, you lean left. Now, don't go overboard and try to lay the bike down, but definitely make sure you are leaning into it. Once I learned that concept and got over my fear, riding was so much more fun!

The next thing I learned is that if you are riding a motorcycle down an interstate and you have large semi's passing you, be aware (so you aren't scared into nearly crapping your drawers like I was), is that the wind from the semi will push your bike sideways. If you know that may well happen to you, then it's not quite as scary as you have that knowledge previously. Unlike me, I had no idea it would do that and it was VERY scary!

There are other things you should learn as a first time passenger, such as whether the rider wants you to get on or off the bike first or second. Usually the passenger gets off first and on second, but depending on the motorcycle rider, he or she may prefer to do it differently, so ask questions and be prepared, and you'll have a much more enjoyable and safer ride!

1 comment

Hahahahaha, I laughed so hard at this because I did the same exact thing. My boyfriend was so mad at me, but thank God he was able to control the bike that I nearly caused him to wreck! Hey, don’t you think these guys should tell us this stuff before we get on the bike with them?